K. Waterschei S.V. Thor Genk was a

Belgian Belgian may refer to: * Something of, or related to, Belgium * Belgians, people from Belgium or of Belgian descent * Languages of Belgium, languages spoken in Belgium, such as Dutch, French, and German *Ancient Belgian language, an extinct languag ...

football club A football team is a group of players selected to play together in the various team sports known as football. Such teams could be selected to play in a match against an opposing team, to represent a football club, group, state or nation, an all- ...

from the city of

Genk Genk () is a City status in Belgium, city and Municipalities in Belgium, municipality located in the Belgian Provinces of Belgium, province of Limburg (Belgium), Limburg near Hasselt. The municipality only comprises the town of Genk itself. I ...

Limburg Limburg or Limbourg may refer to: Regions * Limburg (Belgium), a province since 1839 in the Flanders region of Belgium * Limburg (Netherlands), a province since 1839 in the south of the Netherlands * Diocese of Limburg, Roman Catholic Diocese in ...

(

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

). It was created in 1919 as Waterschei's Sport Vereeniging Thor with Thor being the acronym of ''Tot Herstel Onzer Rechten'' ("To recover our rights"), later changed to ''Tot Heil Onzer Ribbenkas(t)'' ("For The Benefit Of Our Rib Cage"). It registered to the FA only in 1925 and received the

matricule Association football is the most popular sport in Belgium, which has been played since the end of the 19th century. The national association was founded in 1895 with the intention of bringing some order and organization to the sport. The firs ...

n°533. The club enjoyed a spell in the first division in the late 1950s to the early 1960s and again from 1978 to 1986. After two seasons in the

second division In sport, the Second Division, also called Division 2 or Division II is usually the second highest division of a league, and will often have promotion and relegation with divisions above and below. Following the rise of Premier League style compet ...

, K. Waterschei S.V. Thor Genk merged with '' K.F.C. Winterslag'' to form

K.R.C. Genk Koninklijke Racing Club Genk (), commonly known as KRC Genk, Racing Genk or simply Genk, is a Belgian professional football club based in the city of Genk in Belgian Limburg. Racing Genk plays in the Belgian Pro League and have won four cham ...

. During the season 1982–83, the match between

Standard Liège Royal Standard de Liège, commonly referred to as Standard Liège (; nl, Standard Luik ; german: Standard Lüttich ) or simply Standard in Belgium, is a Belgian professional football club based in the city of Liège. They are one of the most ...

and Waterschei and Standard Liège eventually won the championship. Waterschei won the

Belgian Cup The Belgian Cup (french: link=no, Coupe de Belgique; nl, Beker van België []; german: link=no, Belgischer Fußballpokal) is the main Single-elimination tournament, knockout association football, football competition in Belgium, run by the Belgia ...

twice (1980 and 1982). The latter victory led to Waterschei unexpectedly reaching the semi-finals of the

European Cup Winners Cup The UEFA Cup Winners' Cup was a European football club competition contested annually by the winners of domestic cup competitions. The cup was, chronologically, the second seasonal inter-European club competition organised by UEFA. The tourna ...

in 1982–83. After defeating PSG in the quarter-finals, Waterschei lost the first leg of the semi-final 5–1 at Pittodrie, home of the eventual winners,

Aberdeen Aberdeen (; sco, Aiberdeen ; gd, Obar Dheathain ; la, Aberdonia) is a city in North East Scotland, and is the third most populous city in the country. Aberdeen is one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas (as Aberdeen City), and ...

. A 1–0 victory in Genk, courtesy of

Eddy Voordeckers Eddy Voordeckers (born 4 February 1960) is a Belgian former professional footballer who played as forward. Honours Standard Liège * Belgian First Division: 1981–82 * Belgian Cup: List of Belgian Cup finals, 1980–81 * Belgian Super Cup: ...

, could not reverse the position. Notable players were among others

Lei Clijsters Leo Albert Jozef "Lei" Clijsters (6 November 1956 – 4 January 2009) was a Belgian professional association football, footballer who played as a centre-back. Throughout his extensive senior career, the tough stopper was mainly associated with ...

(international, and father of former tennis star

Kim Clijsters Kim Antonie Lode Clijsters (; born 8 June 1983) is a Belgian former professional tennis player. Clijsters reached the world No. 1 ranking in both singles and doubles, having held both rankings simultaneously in 2003. She won six major titles, ...

), keeper Klaus Pudelko, striker Heinz Gründel, Icelandic striker Larus Gudmundsson, midfielder Pier(re) Janssen and Dutch defender and international Adrie Van Kraaij.

Honours

*Winners: 1979–80, 1981–82 *Runners-up: 1954–55

References

Belgian football clubs history

nbsp;– 1st and 2nd division final tables
THOR WATERSCHEI Football-Blog
(German) Association football clubs established in 1919 Defunct football clubs in Belgium Association football clubs disestablished in 1988 1919 establishments in Belgium 1988 disestablishments in Belgium Organisations based in Belgium with royal patronage Belgian Pro League clubs K. Waterschei S.V. Thor Genk K.R.C. Genk Sport in Limburg (Belgium) {{Belgium-footyclub-stub

Honours

See also

References